Need a rock solid WORKER folder

brad2008 said:
My brother does concrete and will be doing my sidewalk soon. I wanna tip him with a nice folder. I'm looking for something rock solid, high quality and built to last in the concrete world. As far as price goes I'm looking for higher end.



Suggestions ...
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Hello Brad,

I'm not sure what "built to last in the concrete world" means. I'll be honest with you, while there are many knives that will stand up to a lot of abuse, you're still talking about a folding knife at the end of the day. I think that there's a misconception about what a knife can honestly hold up to. Remember that a knife is a tool, and like every tool, it has its intended purpose.

You've got some great suggestions thus far and I will stand behind basically any ZT in terms of functionality. You will be hard pressed to find ANY knife that will outperform a ZT in terms of functionality, regardless of price. The same can be said for many makers.

Just buy something he enjoys. The Emerson/ZT collabs have a great novelty in the way of the wave opener. I was blown away by my first waved knife. Its also very stout.
 
I did concrete work most of my life and I sure wouldn't want to carry a nice knife on the job site. Or a big knife. Always had a utility knife in my nail belt that I used for work. A good 1-1 1/2" sharp wood chisel is very handy too.

Just because I've always been a knife guy and have to have one on me I used to carry a small 2 blade Victorinox in my pocket. Liked it so much I ordered a dozen for when I lost or broke one or gave one away.

Doing formwork your usually wearing a nail belt a lot so you don't want anything very big at all in your front pockets. And anything that clips on would be lucky to make it a day without breaking or getting lost.

I have a lot of big strong folders that I like to carry but when I was doing concrete work they stayed in the truck.
 
ZT 0630 or 0620. No bearings to worry about, g10 handle material for grip and very good blade steel that won't mind getting wet here and there. Plus with the wave feature he can deploy it just taking it out of his pockets, which is very handy especially when one works with their hands for a living.
 
quartertime said:
I did concrete work most of my life and I sure wouldn't want to carry a nice knife on the job site. Or a big knife. Always had a utility knife in my nail belt that I used for work. A good 1-1 1/2" sharp wood chisel is very handy too.

Just because I've always been a knife guy and have to have one on me I used to carry a small 2 blade Victorinox in my pocket. Liked it so much I ordered a dozen for when I lost or broke one or gave one away.

Doing formwork your usually wearing a nail belt a lot so you don't want anything very big at all in your front pockets. And anything that clips on would be lucky to make it a day without breaking or getting lost.

I have a lot of big strong folders that I like to carry but when I was doing concrete work they stayed in the truck.
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I tend to agree with this which is why I suggested a middle of the road kind of knife especially if he is not a "knife guy". For me these days, my large SAK rules for work environments, but it is not so cool, just functional (and replaceable). Having a smaller knife in you pocket on clipped keeps you from using it as a serious prybar. There are always prybars around any kind of carpentry or concrete work if the contractor has the right tools at the job site.
 
This is a good thread more because of the implied question about a folder for construction. I have worked a lot of construction and carried a knife most of that time however I lost some destroyed some and wore some out way prematurely because it's just hard on them. One option that I found worked was to have a pocket knife and just use it for pocket knife stuff, my tool belt was in the way anyway so getting to my pockets was not easy I would just use my utility knife for work stuff. All that said hard to go wrong with a Hinderer or Sebenza 21, 25, or inkosi large, then there are the ZT's that don't have bearings, Emerson's are all great (I don't like the chisel grind but they don't all have it). Again though if it were me these would stay in my pocket while doing job stuff. One other thing I'm speaking as a guy who likes carrying nice knives if he's not that into it then maybe my suggestions would be off the mark.
 
I wonder, why does he need a "rock solid worker folder?" In the limited experience I have had in concrete/masonry work, I used a small jackknife to peel apples and open bags of mix. Get him an Opinel. $10, sharp, and he can replace it without blinking twice.
 
brad2008 said:
My brother does concrete and will be doing my sidewalk soon. I wanna tip him with a nice folder. I'm looking for something rock solid, high quality and built to last in the concrete world. As far as price goes I'm looking for higher end.


Suggestions ...
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I will suggest either a Strider SMF or SnG (depending on your blade length requirements)

Can't think of knives I have used harder, and have taken the abuse all so well.
 
Don't axis locks frequently develop vertical play? How is that rock solid?

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Glenn056 said:
Don't axis locks frequently develop vertical play?
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No.
At least in the real world they do not.
On the internet, they seem to...but on the internet, many 15 year old boys are hot European models, or 300 pound black belt special forces dudes. ;)

No AXIS lock knife owned by me, my father, or my brother has developed vertical play. :thumbup:
 
stabman said:
No.
At least in the real world they do not.
On the internet, they seem to...but on the internet, many 15 year old boys are hot European models, or 300 pound black belt special forces dudes. ;)

No AXIS lock knife owned by me, my father, or my brother has developed vertical play. [emoji106]
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Ahh okay thats good to hear. Just curious because ive seen so many reports that they do in BF

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Blues Bender said:
Sorry, but there is no such thing. I'm safely assuming that your brother is going to treat that knife like a manic gorilla and beat the hell out of it. I know what concrete work entails, I've done it...

The point of a knife is to cut things, and that line of work has many abrasive things to be cut, that edge will be toast in no time. He'd be better off with Stanley with replaceable razor blades so he can always have a sharp edge at the ready.

I've used a folder for doing concrete, and they are almost useless. Things like cutting plastic sheets against pea gravel or CA6 is like dragging your edge against a pile of stones, literally.
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Just what I was thinking.
 
Glenn056 said:
Ahh okay thats good to hear. Just curious because ive seen so many reports that they do in BF

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My Barrage assisted axis has developed a very tiny amount of vertical bladeplay, not sure why... must be the pivot
All other axis locks i have still work perfectly... despite the weird horizontal rotation wiggle in my griptilian lockbar
 
ZT 0200 (now discontinued). Kershawguy has them for a good price. Handfilling g10 scales, open pillar construction, beefy liner lock, flipper/(functional) thumb studs, runs on washers, and easily manipulated with gloves on.
 
Vicarious Reality said:
My Barrage assisted axis has developed a very tiny amount of vertical bladeplay, not sure why... must be the pivot
All other axis locks i have still work perfectly... despite the weird horizontal rotation wiggle in my griptilian lockbar
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Perhaps its because the axis pin has dented or deformed abit? So it is no longer a perfect fit between the liners. That what i guess i would be

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